New York, NY-On Wednesday, a grand jury voted not to charge any police officers in the murder of Breonna Taylor. Instead, the grand jury only indicted one of the detectives involved for endangering Breonna Taylor’s neighbors by recklessly firing his gun during a raid on her apartment in March. Grand jurors indicted Brett Hankison, the former detective, on three counts of “wanton endangerment,” saying he had threatened three people’s lives by firing bullets that traveled through Ms. Taylor’s apartment and into a neighboring apartment. A pregnant woman, her husband, and their 5-year-old child were asleep in that apartment, and the bullets shattered a glass door but did not harm the couple and their child.
Ms.Taylor’s murder has sparked six months of protests and calls for the immediate firing of the police officers involved, divestment from the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD), an investment in Louisville’s communities, and more. Following the news of the grand jury’s decision, protesters immediately gathered in downtown Louisville. During the peaceful demonstrations, the LMPD made several arrests.
In response to the grand jury’s decision, Rovika Rajkishun and Murad Awawdeh, Interim Co-Executive Directors of the New York Immigration Coalition, issued the following statement.
“While we are deeply disappointed by today's decision, the national reckoning on racial justice gripping our country cannot, and will not, be silenced by a single court ruling. We stand with our brothers and sisters in Louisville, Minneapolis, Ferguson, here in New York State and across the country who continue to fight for justice and against white supremacy. The New York Immigration Coalition is proud to stand with our Black sisters and brothers in Louisville in demanding the immediate firing of the officers responsible for Breonna’s death, the defunding of LMPD, and an investment in communities which have borne the brunt of police abuse for decades.”